Manufacture of window glass



1929. M. BICHEROUX 1,741,912

MANUFACTURE OF WINDOW GLASS Filed Jan. 30, 1.929

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1o final thickness.

-' Patented Dec. 31, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MAX BICHEBOUX, F AAQHEN; GERMANY MANUFACTURE GLASS Application filed January 80, 1929, Serial No. 336,190, and. in Germany January 27, 1928.

glass sheetand thenreducing this sheet in the same operation by drawing to the desired According to the known processes of making window glass from molten glass, the glass mass is either rolled into sheets or ribbons between two or more-rolls or the sheets or riblo bons are drawn directly from the liquid glass mass. In these processes the glass sheets are practically given their final thickness already in the first pair of rolls or immediately after their exit from the glass mass. Accelerations ed to the tables receiving the sheets or to all or some of the further pairs of rollers, between which the glass sheet is passed. after the forming, are only very slight and merely" serve the purpose of stretching the glass sheets or ribbons, t at is to say smoothing the glass facesor at the most ness of the sheet.

The "present process therefore materially difiers from the known ones inasmuch as according to it there is first formed in a rolling mechanism comprising at least one pair of rolls a primary or preliminary sheet the thickness of which is, for instance, double as great 35 as the desired final thickness or even more, this rimary sheet being then drawn to the desired w final thicess, which means that the glass precisionizing the thicksheets or ribbons obtain their proper shape' behind the first pair of rolls.

To further ameliorate the product the in vention proposes to laterally stretch and smoothen the sheet oi glass while still in plastic condition, for instance during the opera tion oi drawing. This may be efiected by passing the sheet over one or more rollers provided with oppositel handed threads extending from the inidd e of the rollers to their lihese rollers may be driven so as to ends. rotate either in the direction of the movement W oi the glass sheet or in e opposite direction.

which are, in these known processes, impart-4 The accompanying drawing illustrates an embodiment of-a device for making window glass according to the invention. Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic side elevation of the device;

Fig. 2 is a detail view of a stretching and smoothing roller; Fig. 3 is a transverse section of the glass sheet with means at itsmargins for spreading the sheet in the direction of its width, and Fig. 4: is a view similar to Fig. with a glass sheet having thickened margins.

Referringto the drawings, a are the rolls of a rolling mechanism to which the liquid glass is supplied and by which same is rolled into a primary sheet k which is of a considerably greater thickness than the finished product. The primary sheet passes over rollers e and 7 and is seized at its head end by grip ers g of a cardike draft device 9 which raws the glass sheet to the reduced final thickness shown at i, whereupon the sheet is fed on further rollers to the annealing room, not shown. 1 denotes stretching-or smoothing rollers which, as more particularly shown in Fig. 2, are provided with oppo-.

sitely handed helical threads which. extend from the middle to the ends of the rollers and which exert an outwardly directed stretching pass between them. 7 lln this manner, it is for instance iossible to roll the primary sheet at the heginning oi the operation with a comparatively small thickness for avoiding losses oi glass and set the rolls tor melting a primary sheet oi great thickness no sooner than the actual drawing has begun.

Une or some of the guide rollers e, which are preferably arranged instead of the usual inclined chute, may he polished or/and highly heated. They may also he covered with ashestos or with a fabric which is to be kept moist. "lheir speeds of rotation may in its 'in the manner of the rollers Z. The stretching and smoothing rollers l or those of the ide rollers f which are formed as stretchin and smoothin rollers are arranged at points where the g ass still possessesits first heat or in zones of reheating or at both points. The stretching and smoothing rollers can be formed so that they act on the glass in different degrees; this may be obtained by making the helical threads of difi'erent depth or sharpness. Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is p 1. The method of making from a mass of refined molten glass, W ich consists in rolling the lass mass into a primary sheet of eat thickness, drawing this primary sheet uring the same operation to the desired final thickness and simultaneouslyl l smoothing and stretching the sheet latera y.

2. A device for making window glass from amass of refined molten glass, comprising in combination a rolling mechanism with at least one pair of cooperative forming rolls sheet of great thickness, means for seizing the sheet at its head and drawing it to the desired final thickness, and means for supporting the sheet while being drawn and moved forward.

3. In a device for making'window glass from a mass of molten glass, in combination a rolling mechanism with at least one pair of cooperative forming rolls designed to roll the glass mass into a primary sheet of great thickness, a travelling draft device with grippers for seizing the rolled primary glass sheet at its head end and drawing it out to the desired final thickness, and guide rollers for supporting the glass sheet as it is drawn out and moved forward.

4. In a device for making window glass from a mass of molten glass, in combination a rolling mechanism with at least one pair of cooperative forming rolls designed to roll the glass mass into a primary sheet of great thickness, a travelling draft device with grippers for seizing therolled primary glass sheet at its head end and drawing it out to the desired final thickness, guide rollers for supporting the glass sheet, and means for window lass smoothing and laterally stretching the sheet as it is being drawn.

5. In a device for making window glass from a mass of refined molten glass, in combination at least one pair of adjustable forming rolls adapted to roll the glass mass into a primary sheet of a thickness greater than the thickness of the finished product, means to support the glass sheet during its forward movement, a draft device for seizing the rolled sheet of glass at its forward end and drawing it to the desired final thickness, and revolving rollers arranged transversely of the sheet at such points where the sheet is still plastic, these rollers having oppositely handed helical threads extending from the middle to the ends of the rollers and designed to act on the sheet for smoothing it and stretching it in the direction of its width.

, In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

MAX BIOHEROUX.

adapted to roll the glass mass into a primary 

